Various self-service devices for dispensing straws, cups, glasses, mugs and other beverage containers are known and readily available, wherein such straws and containers are dispensed in a sanitary manner. Unfortunately, however, similar suitable devices are not available for the sanitary dispensing of beverage container lids. Although there have been prior attempts to resolve the need for a sanitary beverage lid dispenser, an inexpensive, reliable, practical, sanitary, and self-service device and method for dispensing beverage lids had not yet been realized.
Beverage cup lids are typically dispensed to customers in a vertical stack or in elongated horizontal trays. When cup lids are tendered in a vertical stack, customers must grab a lid from the top of the stack. Customers of varying heights are not all able to conveniently reach the top of the stack. Because the lids are nested and held together via frictional fit, they will often stick together so that a customer will pick up more than one lid. The excess lids are normally put back on the stack, dropped on the counter, or thrown into the trash. When cup lids are presented in a tray or bin, two hands are often needed by a customer to separate the nested lids. Additionally, such lids frequently become disordered and are often handled by more than one customer, thus resulting in increased risk of unsanitary conditions.
In an attempt to solve these problems, some vendors store cup lids behind a counter, thereby requiring an employee to hand out lids as needed. In addition to being inefficient, this solution merely hides the problem from the public view rather than solving it. Still other vendors provide mechanical dispensers for tendering cup lids; however, such dispensers suffer from structural design flaws that render the dispensers deficient and commercially unsatisfactory. For example, many lid dispensers may only be utilized for specific lid sizes, shapes and/or styles. Further, some lid dispensers require a large number of parts, thereby making them expensive and difficult to manufacture and/or maintain. Less complicated lid dispensers are available, however, such dispensers fail to adequately deal with the problems of sanitation and waste.
Therefore, it is readily apparent that there is a need for a beverage container lid separator and dispenser, wherein cup lids are dispensed in an orderly and sanitary manner. Moreover, there is a need for such a device that may be utilized with lids of varying sizes, shapes, and/or styles and is inexpensive to manufacture and/or maintain.